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Justice News

Galion Man Sentenced To More Than A Decade In Prison For Child-Pornography Conviction

A Galion, Ohio, man was sentenced to more than a decade in federal prison after previously pleading guilty to a child-pornography charge, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.

Richard Cooper, age 32, was sentenced last week to 121 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Sara Lioi. He pleaded guilty in October 2012 to one count of receipt and distribution of visual depiction of minors engaged in sexual activity.

“Protecting our children from predators is a priority of this office and the Department of Justice,” Dettelbach said. “The evidence found here by the FBI and Galion Police Department is profoundly troubling, and this defendant deserves to be behind bars.”

Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Cleveland office, said: “Richard Cooper possessed an alarming amount of child pornography and must be held accountable. The FBI, along with our law enforcement partners, is committed to protecting children from predators.”

On Oct. 12, 2011, Galion police officers executed a search warrant and discovered 47 videos and approximately 772 images of child pornography being shared by Cooper’s computer, and an additional 644 additional images of possible child pornography recorded on two compact discs, according to court records.

A subsequent forensic examination of the computers and CDs revealed 1,416 images of child pornography and 47 videos depicting child pornography. The videos and images include children, some as young as four months, engaged in sexual acts with other minors and adults, including humiliating, sadistic conduct, according to court records.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael A. Sullivan following an investigation by the Galion Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation, Mansfield Office.